


Silvergifting meta

by Bushwah



Category: TOLKIEN J. R. R. - Works & Related Fandoms
Genre: Essays, M/M, Nonfiction
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-27
Updated: 2018-12-27
Packaged: 2019-09-28 19:18:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 394
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17188826
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bushwah/pseuds/Bushwah
Summary: Nature versus art: which shall prevail?





	Silvergifting meta

It really comes back to the way that Celebrimbor’s strength in the relationship (as I headcanon it) is the _power of being genuine_ , and Annatar’s is _the power of being false_.

When you’re genuine, you’re very believable, because, well, that’s how it works. And when you’re making sweet declarations of love, being completely honest is endearing, disarming, romantic.

But when you’re lying, you don’t have to restrict yourself to what you are. Truth is stranger than fiction and less convenient. You can take traits from the best possible version of yourself and present them in a polished light without ever showing your ugly underbelly, your vulnerability, your shame. And you can do this while still telling most of the truth if you even hold back a handful of things (I definitely vary, in my headcanons, which items Annatar is hiding, but he’s always hiding _something_ ).

Consider

> My boyfriend is a messenger from paradise. He’s sometimes arrogant, and he has bizarre quasipolitical opinions I don’t agree with, but he’s very good at the things I like to do and interested in everything about me. I wonder why my friends don’t trust him.

vs.

> My boyfriend was exiled from paradise for war crimes. He’s literally evil and he fought in a war to control the world. He’s very good at the things I like to do, and he seems to be using that to try to find out everything about me. Also, my friends don’t trust him. Gee, I wonder why.

Annatar’s misrepresentation of himself is crucial to the relationship.

(From his perspective, the lies of fact create a sort of artificial distance that helps him feel safe sharing truths of feeling. He can always reassure himself with the idea that there’s something Celebrimbor doesn’t know, so he’s not _really_ making himself all vulnerable and un-evil by falling in love with him. He… doesn’t really acknowledge that he’s awarding himself a ridiculously unfair position of power within the relationship. He doesn’t really acknowledge a lot of things.)

In the end, each of them lost their strength. Sauron let slip too much truth (of his past, or perhaps his plans), and then Celebrimbor was left with no choice but to lie (creating and then hiding the Three, ultimately under torture). Either one of those would have caused it to fall apart anyway; both together made it explode.


End file.
